First Drive: 2018 Ferrari GTC4Lusso T

Eight cylinders instead of 12 make this four-seater even more practical – for a Ferrari

SLOATSBURG, NY – Less is more. How many times have we heard that gem, Robert Browning’s call for a melding of body and soul has become something of a mantra, the roadmap to an enhancing of the quality of life by, well, a simplification of life.

And, most certainly, it applies to the complication that is the modern condition. Overtime — unless you have a Christmas credit card to pay off — is almost always better off reduced than augmented. Certainly, the number of us who need to drink less that outnumbers that should drink more. Ditto for food, debt and the drama that is every workplace’s office politics. Even, I would dare say, our cars need less, as in less complication, less consumption and certainly less girth.

But do they need fewer pistons? Or, more germane to this particular road test, can a Ferrari, the ultimate road-going expression of excess, be enhanced with less engine? And, to make that question even more perplexing, can a Ferrari normally powered by that marque’s storied V12, the engine that launched about a billion automotive fantasies, actually be enhanced by a reduction of four cylinders?

2018 Ferrari GTC4Lusso TFerrari

That’s certainly Pietro Virgolin’s contention. Ferrari’s senior product manager for the new T version of the GTC4Lusso — nee FF — contends that this is the most practical Ferrari yet, literally capturing the epicenter of that compromise between practicality and performance.

Beyond the seeming oxymoronic combination of less and Ferrari, Virgolin may have a point. The heart of that contention lies in the T’s switching from Ferrari’s 6.3-litre V12 that powers the GTC4Lusso — and the FF before it — to a 3.9-litre turbocharged V8 (largely) liberated from the 488. In losing the greater horsepower of that great, wailing V12 — 680 hp versus 601 — the twice-turbo’ed V8 gains a wealth of torque — 561 lb.-ft. versus 514

Virgolin’s assertion is that for a minimal loss in top-end rush, the T has gained a great deal of civility. Mated to Ferrari’s seven-speed, dual-clutch automated gearbox, the grunty V8 is certainly less intimidating to drive that the V12 version. Below 3,000 rpm — the point at which a flapper valve in the exhaust system opens — the T version of the GTC (it stands for Gran Turismo Coupe, in case you were wondering) is whisper quiet and very responsive. Indeed, so thoroughly has the Ferrari tamed the dreaded turbo lag that the 3.9L feels almost electrical in its linear throttle response. Imagine BMW’s torquey and responsive inline six engine; now double the output. That’s pretty much what the GTCLusso4 T feels like. For anyone shopping for a truly well-behaved pit bull, your Ferrari has arrived.

The 2018 Ferrari GTC4Lusso T may be the “practical” Ferrari, but let’s be serious here.Ferrari

Now, mind you, with said civility comes a loss in drama. In the best of times, Ferrari’s new turbocharged V8 can’t hold a tune compared with its V12. And considering that this version of the 3.9L is more muffled than the 488’s, the difference is, well, dramatic. Worse yet, there’s no button, as is so common on other GT cars, with which the driver can manually open the exhaust system up for the full Wagnerian wail. Such is the price, one assumes, for trying to compete with the Porsche Panameras and Bentley GT coupes of the world for luxurious practicality.

Nonetheless, if there’s a raison d’etre to this latest version of the GTC, it is of a (driving) envelope expanded. For instance, the steering is typically Ferrari light, yet, thanks to the third-generation of Ferrari’s Side Slip Control and a revised rendition of Ferrari’s four-wheel steering, it suffers from none of the twitchiness that plagued the F12berlinetta. Indeed, while the first impression of the GTC4Lusso T is of a car that drives smaller than its outer dimensions, it’s also impressive that it remains so stable despite dumping the novel all-wheel-drive system of the FF and V12-powered GTC4Lusso. If the engine’s compromise between sound and sophistication isn’t always perfect, the chassis’ combination of poise and performance is. The one caveat here is that unlike the V12-powered, all-wheel-drive GTC4Lussso, the T version drives only its rear wheels. Yes that means, it will be less practical in our Canadian winters. On the other hand, even the fabulously well-to-do don’t like to subject their Ferrari’s to salt and sand; they have lowly Bentleys for that.

While on the subject of practicality, interior spaciousness is relatively (as in “for a Ferrari”) roomy. What is, of course, obvious is that the GTC is a four-seater. It’s only after sitting in the rear seats, however, that you become aware of how surprisingly roomy it is. Yes, it’s a pain in the heinie to get past the front seats — in this regard the four-door Aston Martin Rapide is more practical even though its rear headroom is cramped — but once ensconced, a long ride is not unimaginable and headroom downright generous. That said, you won’t be bringing a whole bunch of luggage along with you, the Lusso’s trunk much more Mazda Miata-like than Country Squire.

As, for the interior accouterments, the T is very much current Ferrari, albeit with a few twists. There’s a veritable cockpit feeling to the dash in front of the driver, a feeling duplicated for the passenger. There is, for instance, a 10.25-inch touchscreen available to the driver, but, in a truly novel twist, there’s a smaller version available to the passenger that shows off radio controls, the navi screen and even the tachometer/warning gauges. Indeed, the passenger can input a destination in their small screen that then transfers to the main navigation system.

2018 Ferrari GTC4Lusso TFerrari

And, finally a word about style. The GTC’s predecessor, the FF, was a polarizing design. Even Virgolin admits that “people either loved it or hated it.” Those enamoured with the hatch-backed Ferrari praised a design that evoked memories of “shooting brakes” past. Detractors saw the unfortunate mating of BMW M Coupe and a dachshund.

In becoming the Lusso, that polarization has moderated. For one thing, time softens the impact of any radical change — just ask Chris Bangle and BMW. But, more importantly, the GTC’s newly sloping rear roofline is simply more comely than the original, traditional Ferrari front curves and squarish rear no longer the discordant mating of, well, wiener dog and Bimmer.

Which means that the new GTC4Lusso T may indeed be Virgolin’s distillation of practicality and passion. No, the turbo’ed V8 is not as sonorous as the V12. Nor are we Canadians likely to find the new rear-driver as practical as the AWD GTC4Lusso. But, as a car that you really can drive every day, the T is the “easy” Ferrari. The fact that its expected $306,800 MSRP undercuts the V12-powered GTC4Lusso’s by a significant margin just makes the package that much more appealing.